Hundley could have been the 1st pick in the 2014 draft but decided to stay in school. He suffered this year from a lack of quality receivers and a bad line.

Strengths:

He has played in a pro style system in terms of pass patterns although has not worked much under center. He has an NFL arm and anticipates throws fairly well. He reads college defenses well but will need work to adjust to NFL coverages. He is athletic and can run when necessary. He will be a value and be taken in the middle of the 2nd round.

Weaknesses:

Like almost all QB’s coming out of college, he needs to improve his drop back footwork. He also has not seen many complex defenses in the Pac-12.

2. Marcus Mariota QB Oregon rJr 6-4 215

Mariota will likely be the 2nd QB off the board. There is a concern if he can adapt to the NFL pocket style passer.

Strengths:

He is a winner. He led his team to the Championship game. He has good touch with all throws and is accurate on short and medium throws. He has a quick delivery. He shows the ability to run when necessary and protects himself.

Weaknesses:

He has not had the opportunity to show he has NFL arm strength. He was not required to do that in school. He has accuracy issues on long passes.

3. Bryce Petty QB Baylor rSr 6-3 230

Don’t assume Petty will have the same problems that RG3 had. Petty is much more interested in improving his game and less on building his brand.

Strengths:

Petty has an NFL arm and a quick delivery. He is athletic and can avoid the pass rush. He has good vision and accuracy. He stands in against a hit and deliver the ball.

Weaknesses:

He is inconsistent on long throws because of his footwork. He has no experience under center. He seldom huddles and has no experience in pre-snap reads.

4. Garrett Grayson QB Colorado State rSr 6-2 215

Grayson is a developmental QB at best. He has a very strong arm but no accuracy or anticipation.

Unrated Jameis Winston QB Florida State rSo 6-4 232

Winston has #1 ability on the field but will get a GM that drafts him with a top pick fired. He has played in a pro offense and can make all the throws. I would not draft him in the 7th round. He will be the face of a franchise and says all the right things but I don’t trust him.

2015 Quarterback Rankings by Kelron Sykes:

Jameis Winston, Florida State

Strengths: Prototype with his physical makeup. Big, athletic and durable. He moves decisively well within the pocket, and displays elusiveness outside the hashes. He displays good intangibles- poise, savvy, toughness, leadership, and good vision. He delivers catchable balls beyond the second and third levels, while having great zip on the ball when delivering in tight coverage. Remarkably consistent in coverage recognition and displays good field awareness dissecting defenses. He displays great anticipation, instincts, and mental toughness within the tackles. He is remarkably competitive, and thrives on the big moment.

Weakness: Has major character issue. With all the off the field transactions, i.e. shop lifting, sexual assault, and the incident on campus. Jamesis would be off the draft board of many NFL draft boards based upon those transactions. Jamesis will need to quicken his release, as he displays a long wind up release. He will need to develop better eye elusiveness, as he stares down receivers on his intermediate throws.

Marcus Mariota, Oregon

Strengths: Has good size, athletic ability, a good frame to go along with having a tactical work ethic and highly desirable character makeup. He is vastly elusive outside the hashes, and displays enough athletic ability to separate from defenders within the Oregon Offensive System. He is remarkably accurate within short proximity passes, and looks to have a catchable ball with a tight spiral. He looks to be better throwing outside the hashes when pressed to do so, and having a high completion percentage on balls beyond the third level.

Weakness: Does not come from a traditional offense. He struggles throwing across his body, while also struggling to identify coverages. Mariota is a run first quarterback, and struggles with going through is progression. He is highly inconsistent; he will make a tremendous throw on one possession, and then follow up with a blunder of a throw the next. He struggles with vision and awareness, as he looks to be a one read player. Mariota will not take chances vertically, as he struggles with accuracy beyond the second level. He will need to develop natural quarterback reads, as the offense he ran in college was all pre-determined.

Brett Hundley: UCLA

Strengths: Very well built athlete that displays good arm strength to zip the ball in tight coverage, while also having a precise touch to throw the deep ball. He looks to have a quick release and reliable vision to process his decision making out of the shotgun. He displays good elusiveness and pocket awareness, while also having adequate acceleration to separate from defenders. Brett displays good mental toughness that should translate into moderate success at the next level.

Weakness: Most if not all his snaps came out of the shotgun, which made most his reads pre-determied. He doesn’t possess the elusiveness to evade defenders from the pocket, and lacks straight line speed to separate from defenders beyond the first level of defense. He will need to improve ball placement on second and third levels throws as his balls appear to be not in relation with the receivers.

Sean Mannion: Oregon State

Strengths: Tall athlete with moderate build and muscular frame. He does a good job in being fundamentally strong with his delivery of the ball. He possesses good arm strength and can make all three throws adequately well. He comes from a pro-style offense which he appeared to have good field vision and command of the offense. He displays calmness and looks to have command of the offense, along with a solid chemistry with his receivers. He displays a very accurate ball, along with having a desirable touch for the vertical ball. His biggest attribute is his ability to throw through small windows with a touch of velocity to equate to success.

Weakness: He is not overly athletic, and has very slow feet. He looks to struggle gaining depth in his drops, and struggle to maneuver away from on-coming defenders. He will hold on to the ball too long and takes too many chances forcing the issue of deliverance. He has a history of telegraphing his throws, and relies too much on his arm strength. He appears to be very sluggish if not sloppy in mechanics, and struggles to follow through with throwing motion within short to intermediate throws.

Bryce Petty: Baylor

Strengths: Solid size and arm strength, and a very reliable and accurate ball placement. He throws a very catchable ball and thrives on the vertical game. He looks athletic enough in the pocket, and has enough athletic ability to be successful outside the hashes as a runner or thrower. He looks to have precise accuracy within short proximity, and has good pocket presence to dissect defenses.

Weakness: He looks to have most of his reads predetermined from the sidelines. He locks in on receivers, and doesn’t do a good job in eye manipulation. Most of his snaps came from the shotgun, and struggles to quickly identify defensive fronts. He will struggle to avoid on coming rushers, and appears to lack the foot speed to separate from level one defenders.

That is what we think. Tell us what you think by commenting here or tweeting me @NNRonDSN.

NOTE: News, Notes and Rumors podcast are BACK. Check out our thoughts on Fridays about the games coming up and Monday on the results of the weekend. My co-host is Samantha Bunten of NBC Sports. Podcasts can be heard on https://fryingpansports.com/radio-show/. Thanks for your support.

Bill Smith is a former coach of several semi-pro teams, has officiated both football and basketball, done color on radio for college football and basketball and has scouted talent. He edits https://fryingpansports.com. He has also published several novels on and a non-fiction work at http://www.merriam-press.com/. Follow him on twitter @NNRonDSN to get the schedule of Special News, Notes and Rumors broadcasts. You can hear the previous shows on https://fryingpansports.com/radio-show/.

He also edits .

To keep up with the News, Notes & Rumors podcasts, follow me on twitter @NNRonDSN.

Kelron Sykes is a regular guest on NNR and played at Oregon State. He did scouting for the Jaguars as well.